There is a need for a lightweight flexible sheet material which has low thermal conductivity, but which can be fabricated into thermal insulation blankets or panels. Ideally such flexible sheet materials should be safe to use and not produce dust or fibre particles which can be inhaled or cause irritation to the skin of anyone who comes into contact with the material. There are some applications which require such sheet material to be re-useable many times.
In some applications, the material has to withstand exposure to very high temperatures and also provide a thermal insulation barrier, and there are few materials which possess both resistance to high temperature and low thermal conductivity.